A California mom, who is on a state of comatose for over two months already, has given birth to a healthy baby boy Thursday by caesarean section, Fox News has learned.
Melissa Carleton, has been in comatose condition for a while now, but it didn't stop her to give birth to her young boy, now named West Nathaniel Lande, last Thursday at the University of San Francisco Medical Center.
The comatose mom's hubby, Brian Lande, who was also there during the operation and barely left his wife's side, wanted to make sure that Melissa was the first to meet their baby that he instructed the attending medical professionals to place West Nathaniel on his mom's chest after giving birth to him.
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"She was still obviously under anesthesia, but he got to at least smell her first and feel her skin first," Brian shared to ABC affiliate KFSN-TV.
Melissa reportedly went into a coma since March and she has been struggling to regain her full consciousness since. The 39-year-old suffered a seizure due to a benign brain tumor, and this led to her comatose condition, said her father, John Farrell.
Despite being in a compromising state since she was 26 weeks pregnant, Melissa managed to carry the baby to full term, ABC News reported.
"It's tinged with some sadness because of Melissa's condition, but today is a great joy," Farrell said. "She's wanted to have a child for years...Today, I can't begin to tell you how happy we are. It's indescribable."
The comatose mom, who is a marriage and family therapist, was very excited to give birth for the first time and to enter motherhood when she began to feel some considerable changes in her health. She frequently complained of having headaches during the second trimester, and medical testing eventually revealed that she had a benign brain tumor, according to the Fresno Bee.
When she was already scheduled to have her tumor removed, she had a seizure the night before which reportedly led to significant brain damage. Although doctors were able to perform the surgery to remove her tumor, Melissa has not regained full consciousness since, but she is able to open her eyes at times. She could also touch and squeeze her family member's hands from time to time.
"She was also terrified that she would miss the baby and something would happen to her and she wouldn't get to meet our son and she wouldn't get to participate in being a mother," Lande said of his wife.
Interestingly, on Thursday morning, Farrell said that Melissa was in her most awake condition just a couple of minutes before the C-section operation began.
"In a few tender moments, she reached out to Brian, took his cheek, pulled his cheek down to her face and held it there," Farrell said. "It was the first time she had hugged Brian since this trauma happened."
Additionally, Lande also believed that his wife managed to recognize her baby despite her unresponsive condition. "She did wake up a little bit when he came in the room and first cried," he said. "And Melissa and baby were face-to-face, and her eyes were open."
Once the comatose mom recovers from surgery, she will be transferred to a rehabilitation facility, where she will hopefully start to regain her lost bodily responsiveness.
Melissa Carleton's family is currently aiming to raise $100,000 to pay for her medical bills. Lande even created a GoFundMe page. to ask for donations, which will help cover the medical expenses and other bills.
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